Alfie Kohn says American schools get it all wrong

Alfie Kohn is a prolific author and speaker on the issues of education, parenting and human behavior. He's been cited widely in national media and gives talks regularly across the country.

Author Alfie Kohn speaks before an audience at the Artel Gallery in downtown Pensacola on Friday night. Kohn is noted for his books on education, parenting and human behavior.
(Photo: Bruce Graner/bgraner@pnj.com)

Author Alfie Kohn asks for a show of hands during his talk at the Artel Gallery in downtown Pensacola Friday night. Kohn is noted for his books on education, parenting and human behavior. The lecture was sponsored by the Creative Learning Academy and the University of West Florida. Bruce Graner/bgraner@pnj.com Bruce Graner/bgraner@pnj.com

Author Alfie Kohn asks for a show of hands during his talk at the Artel Gallery in downtown Pensacola Friday night. Kohn is noted for his books on education, parenting and human behavior. Bruce Graner/bgraner@pnj.com Bruce Graner/bgraner@pnj.com

Author Alfie Kohn prepares to his notes before speaking to an audience at the Artel Gallery in downtown Pensacola Friday night. Kohn is noted for his books on education, parenting and human behavior. Bruce Graner/bgraner@pnj.com Bruce Graner/bgraner@pnj.com

A guest looks over some of the books authored by Alfie Kohn before the start of his lecture at the Artel Gallery Friday night. Kohn is noted for his book in the field of education, parenting and human behavior. Bruce Graner/bgraner@pnj.com Bruce Graner/bgraner@pnj.com

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Homework is killing their creativity. They forget everything they learned for the big test once they turn it in.

Such is the mantra of Alfie Kohn.

In town Friday to speak at Artel Gallery in downtown Pensacola, Kohn is a prolific author and speaker on the issues of education, parenting and human behavior. He's been cited widely in national media and gives talks regularly across the country.

"Kids subjected to a traditional education tend to lose interest in learning," he said. "We tend to undermine their curiosity, and also the depth of their thinking when we emphasize facts and skills. The more a school is using grades, homework, lectures, worksheets and tests, the less kids are likely to explore ideas from the inside out."

Kohn was invited to speak in Pensacola by Creative Learning Academy's Head of School Dana DeYoung, in partnership with the University of West Florida.

"I just wanted to create some dialogue," DeYoung said. "Teachers are really a community of learners, too. We like to learn or we wouldn't be teachers. It goes back to having different voices to consider. I don't have specific plan so much as I want the teachers to be exposed to interesting ideas about teaching."

Kohn addressed a crowd of almost 100 teachers and parents and talked of of the misplaced focus of the American educational system.

He also was here to promote his latest book, "The Myth of The Spoiled Child," in which, as his website describes, he "relies on a vast collection of social science data, as well as on logic and humor, to challenge assertions that appear with numbing regularity in the popular press. These include claims that young people suffer from inflated self-esteem; that they receive trophies, praise, and A's too easily; and that they would benefit from more self-discipline and 'grit.' "

After a wine and cheese reception, Kohn spoke with conviction about the importance of a letting children explore their own interests and the toxic effect a focus on grades and performance has on a child's learning.

"He's thought provoking," said CLA fourth grade teacher Cathy Duncan. "He's one of those people where you sit there and think, 'Should I have really thought more about this as a teacher through the years? Are there things that I wish I had known about and changed? Are there things now that I can do to do a better job?"